Back to School

So the time finally came for Dad to go back to work (after his BIG three weeks off) Mom to REALLY go back to work, Anna to go to school full time and Hallie to start kindergarten. Big adjustments all the way around! Luckily, Dad was already in the swing, Mom was ready for a paycheck after 12 months, Anna had settled in very well to her few hours a week at daycare and, by July, Hallie was telling people she was going to kindergarten.
Other than Mom and Dad's anxiety about starting kindergarten, the first day went off without a hitch. A benefit of being the daughter and granddaughter of teachers is that Hallie is completely comfortable around a school - especially her new school since it's work for Mom and she's been brought there since about 4 months old.  Colleagues greeted us with smiles combined with expressions of disbelief  as we arrived on campus.  Hallie grinned and responded to each person though she had no idea who they all were.  Mom explained to her that it was going to take time for her to learn their names since there were so many of them and they've seen her since she was a baby.  She practiced the new principal's name all summer (she's known her by her first name since she could talk and now she has to be formal)

We had made this trip to the school many times before but it didn't hit us until about half way down the hall that we weren't just there to work in Mom's room or drop off one of the many boxes of stuff that gets carted back and forth. This was a whole new chapter in Hallie's book as well as ours.  Her experience was a little different than ours was, having gone to preschool for four years first - a bit to UN learn there - but she was excited and more than ready for the challenge ahead.  She knew where to find her room since we had practiced the route a few days earlier and when we arrived, she marched right in.  She found her name tag (which was not a popular accessory) and after a few pictures and a look around the room, we kissed her goodbye and wished her well with all our love. 

In this instance, a nice thing about teaching is that one rarely gets a chance to sit all day, let alone think of anything but lessons and duties.  So, Mom and Dad's minds were kept busy and they didn't have time to fret over the 4 yr old they just sent into a world of 5 yr olds. Though a verdict has yet to be reached whether it is a plus or a minus to be sharing a school site, it was nice for Mom to be able to get a quick hug and kiss in the cafeteria after dropping off her class for lunch!  Hallie had fun, loved her teachers and enjoyed the chance to play on the big playground. There were a lot of new friends to meet, projects to make and rules to learn. 

It will be interesting to see how the kindergarten Hallie grows and learns and adapts to her new expectations. According to her, it was hard to sit and listen all day and not get to play but it was 'good'. So after a rough day of hearing rules; classroom, cafeteria, daycare, she had no challenge at all deciding on a place for a dinner celebration. Red Robin, of course!